


fallacy of the local body

by antarcticas



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fire Nation Royal Family, Inspired by Richard Siken, Poetry, Turtleduck(s), but honestly it's vague poetry that leaves everything up to interpretation, i doubt this will make you cry but here have me overanalyzing existence!, no i have no idea what that means either, this is for the zutara angst collection, zuko and katara are turtleducks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:42:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26419669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/antarcticas/pseuds/antarcticas
Summary: A creature is to a human more than what a human is to a timeline.
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 16





	fallacy of the local body

_“the man stands, the day shines. his insides and_ _  
_ _his outsides kept apart with an imaginary line—_ _  
_ _thick and rude and imaginary because there is_ _  
_ _no separation,_ **_fallacy of the local body,_ ** _paint_ __  
_on paint. I have my body and you have yours.”_  
—richard siken, the way the light reflects

It is rather easy to fail to subsist—the sun ignites the courtyard and every blade of grass, begging to survive, begging to be allowed a touch of salvation, withers away and falls into the earth, burning in the umbers of the soil, sparking the core of what lies beneath. This is the Fire Nation. If these things were not objects they would be spirits . . . and yet they are objects, material, meaningless. 

If a love story occurs and is not observed by a singing bird did it truly happen? This is a question about existence. There are turtleducks in the pond and they are graceful creatures. We can call them refined but that’s different. There are dozens of creatures in the pond and their tasks are elementary. 

A princess walked into this yard and declared that a mother always protects her young. There are other stories here too but they are in the clouds. That was years ago. The sun is vivacious. This is something manufactured but also on fire.

Is it fair to simplify a romance into a singular instance? It does not matter because these are turtleducks. They exist in a world within a palace and when the spirits gaze into the universe they are put aside. Emotions are interchangeable and worthless. The existence of feeling is a drain upon humanity. We are talking about turtleducks.

There are two turtleducks in this pond. One of them was young and the other has come here. Both are grown and terrified of what is going to happen next. Neither have a mother to protect them but both will snap, bite with their teeth, will not stay complacent here. _This is my home,_ the former child will say, and the other one will look into his eyes and nod resolutely. But it does not matter what they do. They are turtleducks. A creature is to a human more than what a human is to a timeline.

The older one looks at the other and cries that they will be defensive and that they will keep up their homeland. But the waves of the world are short and they are tired of being strong. The courtyard is empty. There is a streak of blue across the horizon and the turtleduck falls into the other turtleduck’s arms. _You are my cornerstone,_ says the second animal. _We are not what matters here,_ says the first one.

There is nobody here. This tale does not matter. There are two animals lying dead in the pond. This would have been a nice story but the spirits are forgetful. Humans are meaningless. Sacrifice is a nine-letter word. Regret isn’t. We are not allowed to feel these things. 


End file.
